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XV. ISTANBUL INTERNATIONAL
ARCHITECTURE AND URBAN FILMS FESTIVAL
4 – 9 October 2021

PURPOSE:
Since its foundation in 1954, the Chamber of Architects has been working intensively in the development of the architectural culture, preserving the historical heritage and improving the quality of life. Starting from 2007 it has organized “Istanbul International Architecture and Urban Films Festival”. The aim of the event is to ensure the effective participation of every sector interested in this field, especially the architects.

In the scope of the “Istanbul International Architecture and Urban Films Festival” an international prize competition is organized.

The festival intends to support the produced films and encourage new productions focusing on the field of “architecture and urban”, as well as have acclaimed films in that field meet the audience.

SCOPE:
The festival features the categories of documentaries and animations. All or some of the candidate films, domestic and foreign, which pass the preliminary selection stage will be included in the screening schedule and a competition will be held among those films.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the festival will be held online this year as well. The selected films will be directed to YouTube from the web page of Chamber of Architects, and will be accessible for only 24 hours. Due to large size of the Chamber’s member network, there will be no encryption. With their participation directors and producers are deemed to have accepted this condition.

A selected film in the national category will be rewarded with the Special Jury Prize in Memory of Sami Yılmaztürk, one of the former directors of Chamber of Architects İstanbul Branch, devoted his professional life to the Chamber, and made great efforts to the Festival, and unfortunately passed away in 2018.

CONDITIONS FOR APPLYING TO 2021 INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION:
1. Films eligible for the competition include documentaries and animations produced in the last 2 years featuring architecture and urban issues. Regarding the architecture and urban issues, the festival also focuses on the subjects such as the livable environment, housing problem, urban rights, urban and social justice, urban transformation, and the effects of the pandemic on urban life.
Films should not have participated in this festival before.

2. Films attending in the competition are limited to 60 minutes.

3. a. Non-English-language films will have English subtitles. The dialogue transcripts together with the time codes and srt file (in English) of the pre-selected films (no matter it is in English or not) will be submitted to the Festival Committee.
b. Non-Turkish films in the domestic category will have Turkish and English subtitles.
c) Turkish films in the domestic category will have English subtitles.

4. Whatever the original format of the film is, an H.264 format with MP4 extension can be send via data transfer programs such as Vimeo, WeTransfer, etc. and web sites such as Filmfreeway.
The application form will be downloaded from www.archfilmfest.org and sent to archfilmfest@archfilmfest.org together with any other documents. In case of any technical problems during preview of film the director will be notified. The director has to send a new copy within 48 hours at the latest. Otherwise, the film will be excluded from evaluation process.

5. The downloadable copies of the films to be sent to the Organizer Committee must be accompanied by:
a) The competition application form
b) 2 images from the film
c) 1 photograph of the director
d) Turkish and English biographies of the directors participating from Turkey, and English biography of the international directors (50 words maximum)
e) The film plot (50 words maximum). A 5 minute trailer should also be included.
f) The selection committee will have the right to exclude from competition any films which fail to duly meet application conditions.

6. The participants may participate in the competition with multiple films.

7. The films passing the elimination stage will be placed in the festival archive, and can be included in non-commercial screenings upon notification to the director. The films included in the festival screening program can be screened to public for education and non-commercial purposes. Those films can be screened for free for education purposes to the students studying architecture and urban planning at the universities. The film directors and producers will be deemed to have accepted this condition from the beginning.

8. Of the films that participate in the competition, the Festival Organizer Committee may include in the festival program all or some of the films passing the preliminary elimination. Such films will be evaluated by the jury, and the winners will be awarded.

9. Announcement of Competition: 9 June 2021

10. Application Deadline: 6 August 2021

11. Announcement of Results: Films to be screened will be announced on 11 August 2021 while the winners will be announced in the awards ceremony on 9 October 2021. The award ceremony will be held online.

12. The author will be liable for any third party copyright claims which may arise during screening of the films.

13. The participants will have already acknowledged that the Chamber of Architects will not have any legal obligations in case the films to be screened at the festival are illegally downloaded and copied.

14. If required, the Organizer Committee may change any Selection Committee members, and constitute a preliminary jury.

15. Awards:
Sami Yılmaztürk Jury Special Prize (National Category): 6000.- TL
Documentary Category:
First Prize: 6000.- TL
Second Prize: 4000.-TL
Third Prize: 3000.- TL

Animation Category:
First Prize: 6000.- TL
Second Prize: 4000.-TL
Third Prize: 3000.- TL

The prize of the awarded directors will be transferred to referred bank accounts. The festival bears the bank charges in Turkey, however is not responsible for the commissions of intermediary banks.

16. Board Members and employees of Istanbul Metropolitan Branch, Chamber of Architects, Union of Chambers of Turkish Architects and Engineers (TMMOB), selection committee members, those whom selection committee members provide consultancy and/or act as a business/project partner, etc., and their first degree relatives cannot participate in the competition.

17. Decision of selection committee is final. Decisions are made by majority of votes.

COMPETITION SELECTION COMMITTEE:
Hilmi Etikan (Documentary Director-İstanbul International Short Film Festival Executive)
Doğuş Demir (Communicator)
Eser Yağçı (Architect, PhD, Instructor)
İsmail Doğanyılmaz (Architect, M.Arch., Instructor)
Mustafa Ünlü (Director)
Nihan Belgin (Director)
Uğur Vardan (Journalist)
Veli Kahraman (Director)
Zeynep Talayer (Architect, M.Arch., Instructor)

ORGANIZER COMMITTEE:
Esin Köymen (Chairman of the Board, Istanbul Metropolitan Branch, Chamber of Architects)
Tores Dinçöz (The Board Secretary Member, Istanbul Metropolitan Branch, Chamber of Architects)
İsmail Doğanyılmaz (Architect, M.Arch., Instructor)
Hilmi Etikan (Documentary Director-Istanbul International Short Film Festival Executive)
Selma Erdem (Festival Secretary)
Mert Çoban (Festival Secretary Assistant)

APPLICATION ADDRESS:
Selma Erdem – Mert Çoban

Union of Chambers of Turkish Architects and Engineers (TMMOB),
Chamber of Architects
Istanbul Metropolitan Branch

Karaköy, Kemankeş Cad. No. 31
Beyoğlu 34425 Istanbul – Turkey

Tel: +90 (212) 251 49 00 – 205
Fax: +90 (212) 251 94 14

E-mail: archfilmfest@archfilmfest.org – arsiv@mimarist.org
Web: www.archfilmfest.org